We recognise that the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities have made an attempt to analyse barriers to trust, fairness, agency and inclusivity. We agree that geography, socio-economic background and other factors have significant impact on life chances. However, downplaying the concept of institutional racism masks the reality of discrimination, which is always unacceptable. Our members have told us very clearly that discrimination is a reality for BAME occupational therapists and occupational therapy students, within the workplace and in university and practice settings, from colleagues, managers, recruiters, service users and the public. It is BAME members’ experience that they have had to work significantly harder than white counterparts in order to achieve similar outcomes. To give the impression that institutions do not have an imperative to tackle this experience is counter-productive. We will continue to reflect on the report’s findings.
